Illuminable covering materials are used as a decorating tool for covering floor and wall surfaces, and are used for providing directional indicators (and other visual signals) in occupied structures. Fibrous covering materials which use light-transmissive fibers to transmit light to the top surface of the material are available from Silvaseam Ltd. (Dendrick Mill, Holywell Green, West Yorkshire, England). In these devices, the light-transmissive fibers enter the covering material from external light sources. Such an arrangement provides numerous advantages for some end uses, such as the ability to quickly and easily change the color of the light source. Nevertheless, this arrangement is expensive, because long lengths of light-transmissive fibers are required. In addition, the long length of the fibers produces a decrease in the intensity of the light traveling therein, resulting in a need for more expensive, higher output light sources.
A light emitting fabric suggested as useful for making, among other things, clothing, rugs, and draperies, is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,234,907 to Daniel. In this fabric, light emitting fibers form part of the weave in place of thread. An external light source is disclosed, and the light is emitted from the fibers primarily through scratches in the sides thereof, rather than from free ends of the fibers. Like the Silverseam product discussed above, this product requires longer lengths of light transmissive fibers, and more expensive external light sources.
The limitations of the devices described above, along with other limitations which are inherently present in any one particular device, have reduced the number of end uses to which such illuminable covering materials may be put. It is, accordingly, an object of the present invention to provide an illuminable covering material which is suitable for use with smaller, less expensive light sources. A related object is to provide an illuminable covering material which is suitable for use with shorter, less expensive, lengths of light transmissive fibers.